Once again, we were impressed with the overall quality of films submitted this year. Often it is difficult to select a winner, but our judges made wise decisions.

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Following is a list of winners for the 2006 Student Short Film and Video Festival. The First Place and Honorable Mention Award Winners were screened at a special presentation at the Tivoli Theatre, 5021 Highland Avenue, Downers Grove on October 9, 2006.

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First Place

"Loaded" by Corry Wiens, High School/Fiction
Secondary Filmmakers: Zachary Streich and Jeff Girten
A film about friendship, betrayal and the criminal mind. “Loaded” combines action, suspense and hilarity in one film and focuses on six world-class thieves and their struggles with trusting one another. Running Time: 32 Mins.

“Envious Heart” by Carolyn Chrisman, High School/Animation/Experimental
Five playful fairies elect to show five ominous dragons the road to happiness in an animated story using excerpts from Carl Orff’s dramatic 1936 Carmina Burana as a backdrop. Running Time: 5 Mins.

“Lost Track” by Paloma Boiles, Undergrad/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmakers: The Outfit: Mike Kash, Seiai Tanaka, Sam Wey, Halacy Bowen
Here is a nostalgic look at a lost love that is recalled though listening to an old favorite record. Running Time: 4 Mins.

“Exhibition” by Elena Khrapkova, Graduate/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmakers: School of Animation Cinema "Shar"
This film shows that at an exhibition as well as in life, there can be all and everything. Running Time: 9 Mins.

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Second Place

“Runners” by Alex Laniosz and Michael Herbert, High School/Animation/Experimental
“Runners” is the story of a gangster and rum runner chased by a determined detective in 1920s Chicago. This fast paced adventure combines live action and stop motion animation to create an authentic vintage atmosphere. Running Time: 5 Mins.

“Nightmare” by Tom Sun, High School/Fiction
Secondary Filmmakers: David Zhu, Rich Hong, Kevin Yu
A teenager wakes up in the middle of the night and finds himself trapped in a never-ending blend of reality and nightmare. Running Time: 7 Mins.

“Circumstance” by Christian Hins, Undergraduate/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmaker: Sean Luke
This film asks the question, “do you have control over your existence in all its circumstances?” Running Time: 2 Mins.

“Swimming” by Diane Lisa Johnson, Graduate/Fiction
A shy mail room clerk’s life is changed when she takes a co-worker’s discarded love letter from the trash and decides to reply. Inter-office cat fighting, decepton and romance ensue in the entertaining film about the distance between lthe life you have and the life you want. Running Time: 18 Mins.

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Honorable Mention

“... A Regular Day in Animation Class” by Nick Ray Harris, High School/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmaker: Julien Ianino
The title says it all: This animation is about the strange mishaps that occur during a normal day in Mr. Fritz’s animation class. Running Time: 1 Min.

“Claymotion” by Ryan Carroll, High School/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmakers: Isreal Caldera, Khiry Davis, Joe Enzbigilis & Nick Harris
“Claymotion” is a film about clay heads dancing to Dutch techno. It started off as test movements and evolved into an animation that was mixed and edited by Ryan Carroll. Running Time: 3 Mins.

“Passing” by Elise Holowicki, High School/Animation/Experimental
Passing is an aesthetic portrayal of awkward introverted people longing for human contact in a detached world. Filmed on location in Elmhurst, Illinois, two strangers pass daily on the stairs of various locations, despite a mutual attraction they never meet, even as their lives coincide, they remain separate entities. Featuring music by Elysian Fields. Running Time: 3 Mins.

“Mind Of The Animator” by George Ilavsky, High School/Animation/Experimental
Secondary Filmmakers: WBHS ADV Animation Students
This film examines Willowbrook art students’ thoughts about the animation process. Experimental techniques include drawn, cut-paper, clay and computer animation. Running Time: 3 Mins.

“Luigi and the Pesticide” by Michael Halpin, High School/Animation/Experimental
“Luigi and the Pesticide” is a drawn animation about a bug named Luigi who gets caught up in an epic chase with a can of bug spray. Running Time: 3 Mins.

“Tennis Love” by Jesse Shackelford & Chris Kuech, High School/Fiction
“Tennis Love” is a heartwarming tale of true love. This film documents the journey that one courageous tennis ball must take to reunite with his lover. Running Time: 2 Mins.

“Almost Strangers” by Tchoudomir Y. Goranov, High School/Fiction
A young woman leaves her camera on a café table. The camera is stolen by a thief who becomes infatuated with her looks and decides to follow her. Running Time: 5 Mins.

“Homesick” by Brad Bischoff, Undergraduate/Fiction
Secondary Filmmakers: Jake Zalutsky
“Homesick” is a short anecdote of a man finding himself alone in a new place, wishing he had something familiar to hold on to. Running Time: 6 Mins.

“A True Fish Story” by Eugene Venezia, Undergraduate/Animation/Experimental
Some fish tales are true even with life’s "ups and downs." Keep your dreams alive – buckle you’re your seat belt and let your dreams come true! Running Time: 1 Min.

“Lucky Man” by Dan Faltz, Graduate/Fiction
Couple more over here, Benny. Keep ‘em comin’. That? Nah, got my nose broke again. Waddya mean? Trouble’s chasin’ me, not the other way round. Sure, that’s an old story. I’ll tell ya if ya got a smoke. Running Time: 6 Mins.

“Rosa” by William Sten Olsson, Graduate/Fiction
Rosa, a young girl, sells roses on the streets of a vast Latin American city. Her father has disappeared and her mother has moved in with another man. Equipped with a torn photograph of her dad, Rosa embarks on a quest to find her beloved father. Running Time: 12 Mins.

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